With Craftsman on the move, Ace points to growth in tools

Ace Hardware Corp. said it is continuing to power up its tool department, and Craftsman continues to play a major role -- even as the Sears brand tests the water in other retail outlets.

As the exclusive outlet of Craftsman products in the convenience hardware industry, Ace said it is expecting more of its stores to offer more Craftsman products in the coming months.

Over the next several months, Ace will reinforce its commitment to be a premier destination for Craftsman products by offering more than 1,050 Craftsman products in more than 1,000 Ace stores across the country. Since May 2010, when an initial 10 stores began selling Craftsman-brand hand tools, portable and bench top power tools, pneumatic tools and compressors, wet/dry vacs and tool storage items, an additional 963 Ace stores have started selling America’s most trusted tools, and that number is set to increase.

“The sheer number of stores that carry Craftsman products is a real testament to the brand’s strength and to our retailer’s commitment to offer the best products along with the most helpful service that consumers want and expect from Ace Hardware,” said John Surane, SVP consumer marketing, merchandising and paint for Ace. “What we’re offering consumers is a combination of choice and DIY knowledge that they can’t obtain elsewhere."

Since the inception of its agreement with Sears to sell Craftsman, Ace has remained the exclusive retailer of Craftsman products in the convenience hardware industry. More than 1,200 of its stores will carry a full-line assortment by year’s end. Ace’s stores participating in the program can currently carry more than 650 individual items, with an additional 400 products scheduled for in-store displays in the next 90 days. The increase is thanks to a new commitment to feature Craftsman mowers, tractors, hand-held power equipment, snow throwers and garden hoses in select stores.

With Ace’s semi-annual convention of retailers set to take place in Denver this October, the number of stores committed to the Craftsman program is projected to grow even further, expanding toward 2,500 stores nationwide. “We are forecasting significant and sustained increases across multiple categories,” Surane said. “Retailers are seeing the potential for increased sales and are excited about the different options for in-store display.”

"Stores that offer all available Craftsman products have reported double-digit growth, with a 13% greater increase in tool department sales as opposed to stores that don’t sell the tools," Surane said. "At the wholesale level, Craftsman has contributed to 15% growth in overall tool sales."